Moments Best Remembered
by Shadu
Summary: Just some Ianto/Lisa drabble. Pre-Season 1, when Lisa was still human. Ianto catches the flu and Lisa is there to take care of him. Funny how the moments you remember best aren't always the best times.
1. Chapter 1

Lisa smiled as she walked up the stairs of the flat building towards her boyfriend's home. It was the first full day they both had off in a long time. Torchwood had kept each of them very busy. It was also the first chance they had to be together since starting. They still visited each other frequently, but it was often after work and just for an hour at a time normally. Her boyfriend was the one most worried about work splitting the two of them. Lisa didn't think that was likely, but he always was a bit of a worrier.

They had agreed to take their week vacation at the same time so they could go and do something together. They were planning to go to Cardiff today to see a popular play. Lisa had always wanted to go to a play, even as a kid, but this was her first time. They had also decided to start out early and make a full day of it. She shifted the backpack slung over one shoulder to a more comfortable position. It contained the lunches she had prepared for the pair of them.

They had agreed to meet at his flat at nine-thirty. It would take a few hours to get from London to Cardiff. By then, it would be time for lunch. They would probably eat in the park, maybe even take a walk if she could convince him to. Then, they would go to the theater and wait for the play there. After that, he had said dinner would be his treat. She guessed they would talk about heading home, but she also guessed it probably wouldn't happen that way. A smile came on her face just thinking about the day to come.

Lisa rapped her knuckles on the wooden door and stepped back, pushing a stray strand of black hair out of her eyes as she waited. She shifted her wait to the other foot, changed the backpack to the other shoulder, and watched the door expectantly.

"Ianto?" she called through the door, knocking again.

She fished her keychain out of her jacket pocket and shifted through the various keys it held until she found the one she wanted. She smiled. Ianto had given her a key to his flat a few months ago. He told her that she was always welcome. Still, she tried to tell him when she was coming by. Her mind generally worried she might walk in on him taking a shower or toweling off or even, though it was unlikely, sitting on his couch and watching TV in his underwear. She had walked in on him doing the first two, though she hadn't gone into the bathroom to see him bathing. He did tend to walk around the apartment without a shirt as he dried off his upper body, but he was always wearing pants when he did so. A very light hint of a blush came on her face when she thought about him shirtless as she slipped the key in the slot and easily turned it, opening the door with a click.

"Ianto?" Lisa poked her head in the door, looking around.

There was no indication that anyone had been in the front area at all this morning. The TV was off and the couch was tidy. If Ianto had been on it since going to bed last night, the blanket across the back of the couch would've been messy. There was no coffee in the coffee pot and no scent of freshly made coffee in the air. As if all this weren't good indicators, there were absolutely no lights on, no light in the room except for what came through the blinds on the window.

"Ianto?" she called again, closing the door behind her.

Her eyes looked around before she set her backpack on the couch. She flipped on a few lights as she walked over to the bedroom door. She eased it open, peeking into the shadowy sleeping quarters.

Ianto laid on his stomach on the bed, barely covered by the blanket that hung loosely on the bed. His back rose and fell peacefully and rhythmically, his head lying on the pillow which rested on a bent arm. One leg stretched out of the blanket and extended towards the end of the bed and wall. He looked so peaceful, Lisa almost couldn't bear to wake him. Of course, seeing him sleep wasn't a brand new thing; she had seen him sleeping before, but it was usually on the couch resting his head on her and it was usually late at night while they were watching a movie. The work seemed to wear him out more than it did her. It amazed her that he even took the job when he was offered it.

"Ianto?" she whispered, coming up next to him and gently rubbing his back.

Ianto stirred, his droopy eyes opening slowly. His head roved around to look at Lisa and he sloppily smiled, rolling onto his back.

"Good morning," Ianto stated slowly. "What brings you here?"

"We had a date, you remember?" Lisa stroked his forehead. "I knocked, but you didn't answer, so I let myself in."

"That's why I gave you the key. Still, why are you here so early?"

"Ianto…it's nine-thirty."

His eyes widened. "What? Nine-thirty?"

"Yes. We agreed to meet now."

"Yes, we did…but how can it be nine-thirty?"  
"It is Ianto. And our bus leaves-"

"In twenty minutes from the bus stop on the corner. We have plenty of time," he sat up and swung his feet over the edge of the bed. "Let me get dressed and we'll head out."

"Are you okay Ianto?"

"Yes! I'm fine, just stayed up late last night and forgot to set my alarm. It happens occasionally. Now shoo! Let me dress."

She smiled at him and leaned in for a kiss, which he gave her. Then he stood and shooed her out of his bedroom. Lisa chuckled to herself a little as she went to the living room and sat beside her pack. She looked around Ianto's tidy flat. The kitchen was to one side of the living room. Its sink was clear, all the dishes washed and dried and in their proper places in the cabinets and drawers; Ianto obviously did his dishes last night in preparation for today. Every book in his home was in its proper place on their shelves, all his memorabilia and trinkets dusted and standing proudly around the books. The remotes were in the drawer on the black coffee table in front of the plush couch, the light blue blanket he kept out in the living room carefully folded and set on the back of said couch. A few black and red pillows sat on either side of the dark couch. There was also a chair to the right of the couch. Against the wall was a stand that held a rather large TV with a DVD player and TiVo underneath. All his DVDs, few that there were, stood on a rack beside the TV. His bedroom, although rather plain, was just as tidy, his closet very organized and clean. She was very aware he kept his bathroom almost spotless and his office, which he used the other bedroom for, was almost professional in its cleanliness and organization. She knew he wasn't obsessive compulsive no matter how much he seemed to be because she had been over on many occasions when he had been swamped with work and hadn't been able to clean, and he didn't mind it as much as she would expect. It didn't seem to bother him at all really. But he had a place for everything and tried to keep them there. Lisa found it rather cute, just like him.

"So, are we ready to go?" Ianto smiled as he walked into the room.

He looked dapper as always, but in a more casual dapper that he reserved just for her. He was dressed nice for the play and dinner, but it wasn't an extremely nice affair, so he allowed himself to loosen up a little. He wore loose, black pants that were dressy casual, reaching down to his smart black shoes, and a long-sleeved shirt, a gentle blue in color. She always did like that color on him. He left the top few buttons undone, revealing a speckled grey t-shirt underneath.

"Of course love," she rose to meet him.

She was dressed in nice, black slacks as well, matching his decor. She had elegant black shoes that swept down and ended in a toe, matching her black pants. She would normally wear heels, but knew they would be doing a lot of walking. She wore a lovely red blouse, one that Ianto himself had picked out and bought for her. She loved it not just because it was from him, but because he actually chose well. He wasn't usually good at picking clothes for her.

She walked over, smiling, and Ianto pulled her close and gave her a little kiss on the forehead.

"You look lovely, as always," he told her.

"You are quite the flirt," she laughed.

"How can I be flirting when you're already mine and I'm only telling the truth?"

Lisa just laughed again and gave him another quick kiss before he went to his closet to grab a light jacket, hanging it over his arm before they walked out the door.

The day went more or less as they thought. They arrived in London in the early afternoon and at lunch in a beautiful park. Just as Lisa had hoped, they did take a walk around the park, talking a little but being silent and enjoying each other's company more. The left the park and walked to the theater, getting there only about half an hour before it opened. They got excellent seats because of their early arrival. When they left, the sun was starting to set. Ianto took her to a nice restaurant where the food was wonderful and the candlelight was better. They stayed there until night had fallen and the last bus was leaving for London.

It was very late when they returned, middle of the night somewhere Ianto guessed. The two were walking down the hall to Lisa's flat, Ianto's arm around Lisa, both smiling.

"I had a wonderful time today," Lisa told him.

"Me too," Ianto smiled broader. "I'm so glad we could do this."

"What are you up to tomorrow?"

Ianto shrugged. "Dunno. Haven't made plans. You?"

"I haven't made plans yet either."

"Well…if you're in the neighborhood, come by."

"I would love to," Lisa smiled.

Ianto smiled too, before coughing harshly and suddenly, turning to the side so he wouldn't cough on Lisa. She watched him worriedly as he coughed and then proceeded to clear his throat of the sputum he loosened and uneasily swallowed it back down. He turned back to her, smiling weakly.

"Sorry, something tickled my throat," he told her.

"You okay love?" Lisa looked up at him, worry on her face.

His brow crumpled. "Do I look bad?"

"Well, no."

"I'm fine sweetheart," he kissed her forehead. "I just choked on some of my own saliva. It happens."

Lisa smiled thinly, and then reached up to kiss him. "Love you."

"Yes, I love you too."

"I'll try to come round tomorrow."

"I'll try to be home," he teased, grinning. "And if I'm not, just let yourself in."

"As always?"

"Yes, as always," he chuckled.

With a final hug and a kiss, Ianto said goodbye for the evening and left to start the trek to his flat. Lisa watched him until he was out of sight before heading into her flat.


	2. Chapter 2

Lisa had been concerned when Ianto coughed last night, but accepted his explanation at the time. Still, when she woke up, something inside at the pit of her stomach that told her it was more than spit. So as soon as she had gotten dressed and eaten a touch of breakfast, she headed straight for Ianto's flat. She hadn't gotten coffee yet because he always brewed better coffee anyway. She told him he should work in a coffee house, but he never believed her. He said that he was just as good as anyone else, even though she told him time and again her coffee never tasted as good as his. That was one of the things that had first attracted her to him; he preferred coffee over tea. He often stated he would drink tea, but his first love was coffee. She shared his sentiment.

On the way over, she had talked herself down and out of a frenzy, saying to herself that he was fine and would be chipper and shocked when she walked through his door, or he answered to see her there. But when he didn't respond to her knock, that familiar sense of worry jump back into her heart. She calmed herself by saying he was just in the shower and hadn't heard her. She unlocked the door, once again letting herself in.

Even though it was ten-thirty in the morning, one look around his flat told her he hadn't been up at all. The only sign that he had even come home at all was his jacket over the back of the couch. That at least calmed her mind when she feared for a moment he hadn't made it home. But there was no mess, no light, and no aroma of coffee to greet her.

"Ianto?" she called into the flat, closing the door behind her again.

No response.

She eased back to the bedroom side of the flat. It was possible he could be in his office. Some times he could get so caught up in his work, he blocks everything out. Sound, distracting sights, feelings, needs, everything. One of the few things that could pull him out of his accounting and office trance was the scent of fresh coffee, and the other was touch. She decided to try his office first, pushing the door open slowly.

There were no papers on the desk, pens were in their place, his computer sat idle on the desk, a rack of CDs mounted across the top of the desk, and the filing cabinet was closed and straight, but the chair was pushed up underneath the desk, the light was off, and there was no Ianto. She sighed and pulled back out of the office.

She hesitated before his bedroom door, almost dreading what might lie within. Her mind automatically jumped to the worst case scenario, but part of that might've been the Torchwood work she had done in recent months. They usually saw the bad things, and knowing that he worked for Torchwood as well made her fears plausible. She reluctantly opened the door and took in what she saw.

On rather nice, padded arm chair that Ianto had in his room at the side of his bed were his clothes from yesterday, thrown carelessly on to it. His pants were just barely hanging on the arm chair. She often wondered, and had frequently asked, why he kept the chair in his room. He had told her that sometimes it helped him sleep because occasionally, he needed to sit up to sleep. The closet was still open a small crack and the remote for the small TV he had at the foot of his bed looked to be untouched, which was unusual since he usually watched a few minutes at least before going to sleep. He frequently fell asleep with it on, actually. Something about watching TV made him sleepy, so he said. Lisa said it was just exhaustion.

Ianto himself was still in the bed, lying on his side and facing away from Lisa. He had the blanket pulled around him and there was no limb sticking out of the blanket this time. Even under the sheets, she could see he was curled up on himself. His short hair laid rather flat, some of it even sticking to his glistening forehead. He was pale, making him almost white. He was pale anyway, but he looked almost like a ghost now. She did always say he needed to get out more. The only real hint of color on him was the flush of red over his cheeks and nose.

Lisa gingerly lowered herself onto the side of the bed and reached out a hand to Ianto, massaging his shoulder a little.

"Ianto, love?" she called softly.

She saw his eyes shift under his eyelids and then his body began to move, slow and lethargic. It was almost like watching someone roll over in slow motion. His eyes opened halfway, but they were just barely so. He blinked sleepily, his droopy eyelids wanting to close.

"Lisa?" he whispered.

"Yeah, it's me Ianto," she smiled despite her worry. "I came to see you this morning, but you didn't answer, so I let myself in again."

He tried to smile, causing his eyes to slip closed. "Yeah, I figured."

"Are you feeling okay love? You look awful."

"I feel about that bad. Awful," then he thought about it. "No, actually, I feel worse than that."

Lisa tenderly stroked his forehead, pushing stray strands of short, dark hair out of the way. His hair was wet and left little trails across his forehead and even stuck to Lisa's fingers a little.

"You're very warm," Lisa stated. "I think you might be running a fever."

"Wonderful," Ianto hoarsely bit. "It's bad enough already."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm close to having a migraine. I can see the aura."

"Sick and a migraine..? I suppose a sickness could trigger one."

"Yes, usually sickness aggravates any conditions you already have. I just happen to be cursed with a weak head."

"Don't say that," Lisa cooed, stroking his forehead. "It's not your fault."

"That's why I said cursed."

"Your head is wonderful."

"When it's not having a migraine."

She leaned down and kissed his forehead soothingly. "But you were fine yesterday. Weren't you?"

"Yeah, I felt pretty good yesterday. A little tired, but that's not really that abnormal anymore."

"You got sick overnight?"

"Would appear that way. It's not that unusual, especially if it's the flu as I think it is."

He rolled onto his side and away from Lisa to cough violently into his fist, struggling to breathe in between, and when it finally subsided, he rolled back onto his back, looking completely drained. He took a few gasps of air to steady himself before trying to open his eyes and look at Lisa again.

"You should go," he rasped, his voice raw and sore. "I don't want you to catch it."

"You don't worry about that. I'll deal with it if I get sick," she placed a cool hand on the side of his face, causing him to close his eyes. "You need someone around here."

"I can get a neighbor to help me."

"You know that you can't do that. You don't even speak to any of them."

"How do you know that?"

"You told me once. A while ago."

"I'm sure I can find someone."

"When? You barely move around in bed as it is. Have you even gotten up today?"

"No, I haven't. I'm just so tired."

"So why waste your time and energy asking neighbors when I'm here and willing?"

"Because-"

"You don't want me to get sick. I know. But I'm not worried. And I do have neighbors I can talk to and have help me should I get sick. You don't, and you need someone," she petted his head softly. "And I do have the whole week off."

"Yeah, but I would think you'd want to do something else," he forced his blue eyes to look at her.

"I would want to spend it with you, but you're ill, meaning I would have to be here anyway. Besides, if I went home now, I would spend my week worrying about you, and I'd constantly be calling, or trying to call you anyway."

"I'd probably unplug my phone anyway."

"I know, since you have a migraine coming. That's what you usually do, and that would make me worry, not being able to get a hold of you."

"But you shouldn't get sick because of me."

"Hush Ianto. Go to sleep. I'll be back in later."

Ianto blinked sleepily, before sighing and closing his eyes again, rolling over onto his side. Lisa stroked the hair over his ear, feeling his fever through her finger tips. She sat with him until she was sure he was sleeping even through the coughing and slight sniffling. Lisa couldn't help but smile gently as she watched him sleep. She stood slowly so she wouldn't disturb him and left the room, leaving the door open. She gave another look back to her sick, Welshman before going into the living room to let him rest peacefully.


End file.
